


I'm ready to forgive you, but forgetting is a harder fight.

by WhoGeek



Category: Mystery Skulls Animated
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Amnesia, Angst, But no, Cuddling & Snuggling, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Everyone is confused for most of this, Fluff, Multi, Panic Attacks, Pining, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, but a fairly mild one?, discussions of trauma, had to go through angstville first, no beta we die like fools, this was supposed to be mostly fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-31
Updated: 2019-10-31
Packaged: 2021-01-15 06:21:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21248849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhoGeek/pseuds/WhoGeek
Summary: A Soulmark forms when the person you love touches your skin. Arthur has two, and the people who Marked him have no idea he has them. Turns out it's not a secret he'll take to his grave. Not when hedoesn'tget impaled with stalgmites after being tossed off a cliff.





	I'm ready to forgive you, but forgetting is a harder fight.

**Author's Note:**

> I spent a week or so writing this ridiculous thing. All because I stumbled on MSA fic, discovered OT3 fic, went, "yep, that's my jam" and then someone in a discord for another fandom mentioned soulmates and my brain pulled up a vague memory of a fic in YET ANOTHER fandom and went "What if Arthur had Marks from Lewis and Vivi but didn't think he deserved them and so hid that he had them?"
> 
> This is the result of several days of yelling at my friend.
> 
> Title from "Little Did You Know" by Alex & Sierra

Arthur opens his eyes and blinks at the flat, bare ceiling above him. Gone is the cave and the ledge, replaced by the empty inside of the truck. What happened? The ghost was  _ Lewis _ . Which means Lewis is  **dead** . Which means...

A voice interrupts Arthur's confusion, familiar but changed. "When did… When did I Mark you?"

Arthur turns slowly to look at Lewis, kneeling by his right hip and staring down at something with a blank expression. Arthur follows that gaze down his own body to where his shirt is twisted up in a skeletal hand to expose the faded purple rose. "Lewis…"

" _ When _ , Arthur?" Lewis's hand clenches as his voice cracks and Arthur's eyes snap up to the skull face of his dead soulmate. "Just tell me. How long have you been carrying this?" Lewis turns to meet Arthur's gaze and even as difficult as it is to read expressions on a skull there's a desperate waver in Lewis's voice.

"The day after you and Vivi exchanged Marks. When you hugged me it pulled up my shirt and you touched my skin." It's such a relief to finally have it out there that Arthur misses the hurt noise Lewis makes.

"You've been carrying an incomplete bond for three years?"

"Two."

"Three years, Arthur. I may be dead but I know when my soulbond anniversary is."

"So do I, Lewis. I  _ mean  _ two incomplete bonds." He reaches up to pull down the collar of his shirt. "Got this one three days after you Marked me." Vivi's blue orchid is a splash of bright color on the pale skin just below his clavicle.

Arthur can't stop the strangled giggle he lets out from the relief of finally sharing these secrets. The years of hiding from his friends, his  _ soulmates _ , because he knew that he’d always be just the third wheel to their perfect romance. Then in one night it seemed like none of that mattered so much; Lewis going missing, losing his arm, Vivi's swiss-cheese memory, the terrifying blank of his own memory of that night.

“I wasn’t going to ruin what you had because I’m just a greedy bastard.” Lewis tries to interrupt but now that Arthur has started giving voice to his fears and anxieties he can’t stop. “And then you were just  **gone** and my arm was gone and I couldn’t remember what had happened and Vivi couldn’t remember you at all and your Mark was all faded and the doctors said it was trauma and we’d probably remember eventually but neither of us have remembered anything and I had to find you because maybe finding you would fix some things and at least Vivi would be  _ fine _ and then…” Arthur sits up slowly, inching back from Lewis, left arm still mostly useless and dragging. “You. You were in that mansion. You tried to kill me. Why would you be trying to kill me? And you dropped me off that,” He waves around the inside of the truck, “that cliff!” He scrambles to his feet, flinching back against the wall when Lewis rises and steps closer. “You’ve been trying to kill me! Why would you do that? You were going to kill me!”

“Arthur.” Lewis steps closer and Arthur backs into the corner, voice rising in panic as he continues to babble over Lewis's attempts to get his attention.

“Why would you kill me? You threw me off a cliff. You wanted to kill me and you threw me off a cliff!”

“BECAUSE YOU KILLED ME!” Flames burst out from Lewis and Arthur drops down into the corner, terrified into silence. “I died, because you pushed me off that cliff.”

“No.” The word comes out as a whisper, confused and horrified.

“I thought… I thought you were jealous and took advantage of an opportunity to get rid of me.”

“I wouldn’t! Would I? I don’t remember. Why don’t I remember?” Arthur curls into himself, clutching his head with a whimper as he tries to remember anything through the sudden throbbing pain.

"You were grinning when you shoved me over the edge." Lewis's voice is hard and biting. Accusing.

Arthur sobs, pressing his forehead hard into his knees, right hand going to the Mark on his hip in a familiar and comforting habit. "You're my  ** _soulmate_ ** . I wouldn't… You're my soulmate." It comes out a quiet plea, and Arthur sobs brokenly into the sudden silence between them.

A long minute passes before Lewis crouches down and lays one gentle hand against Arthur’s shin. Arthur flinches, curling up tighter. "I've spent so long thinking you resented me. That you'd been drawing away because you wanted Vivi."

Arthur shakes his head. "Greedy." His voice is a hoarse whisper. "Wanted to Mark you both. Wanted to force myself in where I had no right to. Easier to ignore when I wasn't around the two of you and your perfect romance."

Lewis tightens his hand for a second. "Seeing my Mark on you when you were falling… you were my best friend. And you loved me." Arthur lifts his head up to peek at Lewis when the ghost's voice falters. Lewis's other hand is cupped protectively around the heart on his chest as he stares down at it. Instead of smooth and shining gold the surface is cracked and a dull gray. Arthur sucks in a breath and Lewis looks up. "You loved me. Why would you want me out of the way?"

"I didn't. I ** don't.** You have to believe me."

Lewis is silent for a long moment. "I want to."

Arthur breathes a sigh of relief and watches some of the cracks on Lewis's heart fade as it flashes golden.

"I'm surprised Vivi and Mystery aren't in here… oh God, we crashed. They were in the back! They could be hurt!" Arthur staggers upright, lurching against the wall of the truck. Lewis floats upright and turns, gliding fast towards the other end of the truck which opens for him. Arthur limps after him, the aches from the chase, the crash, and being thrown about by Lewis slowing him down.

Lewis is standing perfectly still just outside the truck, hands raised in response to the shotgun pointed at his head. “I dunno who or what the hell you are but you’d best be goin’... Arthur!”

The shotgun wavers as Arthur jumps down, staggering a little. Lewis jerks a little, like he wants to help and Lance jerks the barrel back towards the ghost. “It’s ok, Uncle Lance. He’s a fr… he’s not here to hurt us.” Arthur chokes back the word ‘friend’ and Lewis flinches at the redirection. “Vivi and Mystery were in the back, have you seen them?”

Lance finally lowers the shotgun but keeps a suspicious watch on Lewis. "Yeah, they had a hell of a fight goin' on behind the van. Big blue tree lady. And uh, I'm pretty sure that dog ain't actually a dog."

"Vivi." Lewis turns towards where the van is still sitting and takes one step before Vivi steps around the back door. She's leaning against the skewed door with one hand and holding her bat with the other.

Relief rushes through Arthur at seeing her up and moving under her own power and he sighs. Arthur staggers towards her, past a suddenly still Lewis. "Vivi, are you…" A wave of terror sweeps everything else away when Mystery appears behind Vivi. It's still clearly Mystery, but huge and with multiple tails waving behind him.

"Arthur?" Lance's voice seems to come from somewhere far away. Distantly Arthur realizes he's hyperventilating as everything in the brightly lit parking lot goes gray and distant. "Shit, Arthur!"

Everything sways to one side and Arthur has a second to think no, he's falling down, then the world goes blissfully black and quiet.

~~~~~~~~~

The sound of a half-whispered argument pulls Arthur back to consciousness. The familiar smell of grease, gas, and burnt coffee tells him he's in the break room of Kingsman Mechanics. He's stretched out on the ratty old couch that usually holds boxes of parts. He feels like one giant bruise.

"Ow."

"Arthur! Are you ok?" Vivi's face appears above him, clearly worried. "What happened? Why is the ghost from the mansion here? Lance said you said he's not going to hurt us but he definitely wanted to hurt you last time and Mystery and I fought a crazy tree demon lady and he got huge and I think I've got magic or something!"

"Slow down, Vivi. He just woke up." Lance offers a hand to help Arthur sit up, steadying him when he sways. "Easy. Are you ok?"

"Everything aches, but I've been worse." Arthur gestures weakly at his left arm. Vivi frowns and settles on the couch, picking up the limb and letting it drop between them. "Sorry about crashing into the shop, Uncle Lance."

Lance frowns and shakes his head. "Not your fault, kid. And we'll get it fixed later. I'm just." Suddenly Lance reaches out and pulls Arthur into a rough hug. "I'm glad you're alright." With an almost-gentle slap on the back Lance pulls away. "I'll be in the office, then. Holler if you need anything."

With that Lance ambles out of the room and Arthur can't avoid the other two. Lewis is leaning against one wall, arms crossed and shoulders hunched in an achingly familiar way. Any time Lewis fought with Vivi or Arthur he would curl in on himself, try to look smaller. As the silence stretches on Lewis pulls in tighter.

"Okay!" Vivi's bright exclamation makes Lewis and Arthur jump. "So, who goes first to explain what just happened?"

Mystery sighs and stands up from his watchful position in the middle of the room. " **I believe we must start at The Cave. And that I must be the one to explain what happened.** "

Lewis's shoulders go back and his hands clench. "Why."

The look Mystery gives Lewis is both annoyed and sympathetic somehow. " **Because I am the only one who knows the whole story. Come. Sit.** " He uses one tail to pull another chair over towards the couch, positioning it to Arthur's right. Lewis sways forward, hesitates, then slowly walks over to join them in a loose circle.

Mystery takes a moment to settle, sitting primly and glancing at each of them before starting. " **A group of friends decided to take a trip and explore places reported to be haunted.** " Mystery's tails lift and sway and tiny glowing figures appear in front of each of them. Vivi gasps delightedly and lifts her hands around the blue figure in front of her.

Arthur stares at the golden silhouette in front of him, glancing at the purple one in front of Lewis and the red one in front of Mystery. " **During their trip they heard talk of a cave that held a grave danger.** " The four figures converge and a glowing green cave entrance appears.

Mystery's head drops and his eyes close for a moment before he looks up and continues. " **The Guardian had grown complacent though, and missed the danger.** " The figures enter and split into two groups, blue with red, purple with gold. " **By the time the Guardian realized there was a Demon it had already found a foothold.** " Green starts to creep up the left arm of the golden figure, while the red figure turns away from the blue and races towards the gold and purple figures.

The gold and purple figures reach a ledge high above the blue figure as the red figure closes the gap. Mystery whines and closes his eyes again, ears going back against his skull. " **The Guardian… I was too late.** " The green suddenly expands across the gold figure's left side, onto the torso and up to the head. The purple figure turns as the green arm darts out and shoves the purple figure off the ledge.

Arthur chokes as the purple figure plummets down onto the stalagmites below. Vivi gasps as the blue figure collapses by the purple body.

They stare at the tableau for what feels like ages before Mystery continues. " **A Death's Wish to forget.** " Purple sparks arc from purple to blue. Blue stands and the movements look almost mechanical, and heads back up the tunnel. " **The Guardian had only one option: to bind the demon into one arm,** " the green shrinks back, out of the torso and head of the gold figure, " **and sever it.** " The red figure grows, leaps at the gold figure, and tears the left arm off. Mystery looks at Arthur, ears back and head drooping. " **I am sorry for the rough job, but if I had not done so the binding would not have held, and you would be lost to us forever.** "

"Why…" Arthur clutches at the point where his prosthetic attaches to his arm, sucks in a steadying breath, and forces himself to look at Mystery. "Why did it pick me?"

" **You were and are the most vulnerable to such things.** " The little figures in the cave all fade aside from the tiny golden Arthur-shape, which grows bigger. Two points of white become visible, one on the right hip and the other just under the left clavicle. " **As they are, they are like open wounds on the skin of your soul.** "

Arthur nods tightly and ignores the way Vivi turns to look at him with a questioning expression and Lewis's inscrutable stare. "Why don't I remember? My memory wasn't wished away."

" **I don't know. It's possible the demon prevented you from forming a permanent memory, or you may have forced yourself to forget it.** " Mystery shrugs and settles his tails around him, letting the illusion fade completely. " **Perhaps that, too, is my fault; from forcing the demon out of your head and center as quickly as I could.** "

"What about my memories?" Vivi barely whispers the question but they all hear it. "Is there any way to get them back?"

" **There is. And he's right here.** " Mystery turns to Lewis, who jerks in surprise.

"Me?"

Mystery nods and turns back to Vivi. " **It is because you are soulmates that his Death Wish effected you so strongly. And now it is his presence that allows you to even hear about what happened. I'm sure you feel the pull towards him. You felt it before, in the mansion.** "

Vivi nods, staring hopefully at Lewis as she absently rubs at her right shoulder, where the faded purple rose is. "Yeah, is that the bond?"

" **It is.** "

"What do we need to do?" 

**"I must warn you that restoring your memory will restore ** ** _all_ ** ** of them. That includes everything you witnessed in the cave.** "

Vivi stares at Lewis for a long moment, expression going worried, then sad, then worried again before settling into fierce determination. "What do we do, Mystery?"

" **His Mark is on your right shoulder. He must reestablish the connection with you.** " Mystery's ears flick back for a moment. " **Your memories returning will not be a pleasant experience.** "

Vivi scrambles up off the couch and yanks her sweater off, leaving just her camisole. "I can't keep having those blank spells anytime someone mentions a name or I see a photo." She fidgets with the sweater before dropping it on the couch. "I want to know who I've been missing."

"Vivi…" Lewis stands, eyes flicking between his Mark and her face. Even with the skull the mix of hope and worry is clear. Arthur startles when those glowing eyes flick to him. "Are you…"

"Yes." Vivi glares, and Lewis ducks his head. Arthur can clearly imagine the amused and slightly bashful smile that always accompanied that move. She turns her shoulder towards him and braces for whatever happens. "I'm ready."

Lewis nods and holds up his hand, letting the glove fade away, then gently presses his skeletal hand to Vivi's Mark.

A couple of seconds pass before Vivi makes a hurt noise and sways. "Vivi?!" Lewis tries to pull his hand away but it's like someone has glued them together. "Mystery, what's happening?"

" **Her memories are being pushed into the gaps they left. Gaps that had already started to scar over.** "

Vivi starts making quiet little gasping whines, and Lewis has to catch her with his free hand when her knees give out. Flares of purple fire lick out from Lewis and both seem to glow.

The whole thing seems to stop as suddenly as it began. "Lewis." Vivi sobs and wraps her arms as far around Lewis as she can. "Lewis. There was so much blood." Her voice is barely a whisper as she clutches at him. "It was awful. Oh, Lewis."

"I'm here, Vivi." Lewis hand finally moves from the Mark, which is once again in vibrant colors and even glows faintly, and he wraps both arms around her shoulders. "You've got me back." Their voices drop to a low murmur, back and forth as Vivi sobs into Lewis’s chest.

Arthur has to look away, the longing like a chasm in his chest. He rubs absently at where Lewis's Mark is on his hip. Will they want him gone? He's the reason any of this even happened. And Lewis knows he's got both their Marks now.

If he’s quiet, he can probably slip out without Vivi or Lewis noticing. He levers himself out of the couch and takes one step to the side to move behind Lewis and realizes Mystery is still there. He lifts his hand to his lips to motion for Mystery to stay quiet. Mystery just watches as he creeps around towards the door.

He’s just reaching for the doorknob when three pink blurs dart in front of him, taking the shape of the smaller spirits that Lewis commands. “Arthur?" He turns around slowly. "Where are you going?” Vivi is wiping her eyes, expression worried.

“I just thought I’d give you two some privacy?” Arthur curses that it comes out as a question.

The pink spirits bump against his back, pushing him back towards the others. “I’m sorry, Arthur.”

The sincerity in Lewis's voice makes Arthur frown. "You don't need to apologize, I should be the one…"

"You were possessed! Even with you pulling away I shouldn't have jumped to the worst conclusions about you."

"You did see me push you to your death." Arthur grabs his left arm, where flesh meets metal.

"I still should have wondered what else was going on. I knew you, you were my best friend."

"Why are you so caught up on this?"

"Because I thought I was good at reading people! I should have been able to see…" Lewis cuts off with a frustrated noise, gesturing towards where his Mark is. "Apparently I couldn't even read my best friend. I feel like that's something I should have seen before…"

"Maybe you didn't see it before because I didn't want you to!"

"What are you two talking about?" Vivi looks back and forth between them and Arthur suddenly realizes the little pink ghost-blobs have successfully herded him very close to Lewis and Vivi.

"Please, Arthur?" Lewis gently reaches out and runs one finger over his Mark, a thin t-shirt the only thing between them.

Even though the layer of fabric should make the contact unremarkable Arthur can't stop his reaction to the rush of sensation from that tiny contact. A heavy sigh of contentment and his eyes drifting closed as he sways towards Lewis. It would be so easy to give in, to tell them. At least a rejected bond wouldn't be the persistent ache of an incomplete bond. A tiny, hopeful part of him wonders  _ 'but what if they want to complete the bonds?' _ and Arthur can't bring himself to silence it. Arthur nods without opening his eyes.

Lewis pulls his shirt up, exposing the Mark, and Arthur hears Vivi suck in a shocked breath. "Oh, Arthur, when…"

"He said it was the day after we exchanged Marks."

"Is that what mine looked like? All faded like that?"

Arthur nods at the same moment Lewis speaks, "Yeah, Viv. That's what your… what are you?!" A skeletal hand is suddenly pressing against the Mark. "Oh."

Arthur finally opens his eyes, gaze immediately drawn to where Vivi's hands are holding one of Lewis's hands to the Mark on Arthur's hip. That sensation of comfort spreads through him again. It's like being wrapped in the coziest blanket and then having Lewis hug him. Arthur can just see between the tangle of fingers and bone that the Mark has regained its vibrant color and is also glowing faintly.

It takes a moment to realize that Vivi's fingers are stroking along the edges of the Mark and she's frowning sadly. "Vivi? What's wrong?"

She shakes her head and tries to grin up at him. "Nothing!" Her eyes flick back down to where her hand is still holding Lewis's in place and the grin falters. "I just thought, well, if I could Mark you too then there wouldn't be a problem. You'd Mark us back and we'd always be a trio."

Arthur's heart thumps painfully. "Vivi, you can't Mark someone twice." He reaches up to pull down the neck of his shirt so she can see the blue orchid there.

"I've already Marked you? When… how!?"

"Three days after Lewis Marked me. You grabbed my shirt to drag me out of the shop. It was an old shirt, had some holes in it, I didn't even realize until later that night."

Vivi gently traces one petal. The sensation from Vivi is different, more like being tackled by her, or when she’d jump on Arthur’s back and declare he was done working for the day because it was time to hang out. “Is it weird that I like knowing that I’ve left a permanent mark on you? I’m disappointed that I didn’t get to see it happen, but I feel like it means you’re mine.”

Lewis chuckles. “That is a little bit weird, Viv. Did you feel that way about when we exchanged Marks?”

She grins up at Lewis. “Well yeah! You’re mine, and you’d better not forget that.”

Arthur’s brain finally catches on one of the things Vivi had said. "Wait. You said... Mark you… back?"

"Yes! I know it's not considered  _ normal _ to have bonds with multiple people but it's not unheard of and there's actually plenty of people who make it work. Oh!" Vivi turns to Lewis, eyes shining with wonder. "That's why I did that research! It didn't make sense when I didn't remember you!" Her expression falls and she grabs Lewis's wrist. "Oh, Lewis, our plan!"

"Slow down, Vivi.” Lewis finally moves his hands and Arthur has to bite back a noise at the loss. One big hand settles on Vivi’s shoulders. “We should sit down before we continue this.”

In a daze Arthur lets himself be herded back to the couch and pushed down onto it, sandwiched between Vivi and Lewis again. “Plan?”

“Yes. It was part of the reason we wanted to take a longer trip instead of just doing stuff on the weekends.” Vivi picks up Arthur’s mechanical arm and fidgets with the fingers. “You’d been pulling away and we wanted to fix that. If it was just the three of us on the road then you’d have to be close again. You couldn’t run and hide or avoid us.”

Lewis chimes in. “Things always felt off for us without you. It was always the three of us, and I love Vivi but I love you too and every time you pulled away it hurt.”

Arthur’s breath catches. Lewis loves him?

“I feel the same, I love Lewis and I hated when you kept avoiding us because I love you too. We were going to keep pulling you in, making you a part of  _ us _ again. And when things felt right we’d tell you we wanted to exchange Marks with you. And I’d have all my research to prove that it’s not impossible for a three-way bond to work, and we’d be a proper trio again.” Vivi snags the collar of Arthur’s shirt and pulls it down so she can rub her thumb against her Mark. “Although, I guess the question isn’t to exchange Marks. Will you Mark us back, Arthur?”

Arthur glances back and forth between the two of them, thoughts whirling in his head. “You… love me?”

"Yes!" The immediate and emphatic response from both startles a little 'oh!' out of Arthur.

There's a long moment of silence as Arthur weighs everything that Lewis and Vivi have said. Hope and longing and uncertainty warring inside him. Above all he wants to Mark them, wants to believe it's  _ real _ . But the years of keeping silent and telling himself that he'll never have them choke off the words he wants to say.

"Artie." Lewis speaks so softly, and Arthur turns to look at him. "Do you want to Mark us? You don't have to say it, just nod."

Arthur nods, just a quick jerk at first but then he's nodding furiously and he manages to croak out a "Yes. I want… yes!"

"Vi first. Only seems right that you get his Mark first when I Marked him and saw our Marks first." Lewis's gaze shifts to Vivi. "Where do you want it?"

"Left shoulder. I want to have one Mark on each side." Vivi twists a little to put her shoulder in easy reach, eyes shining with excitement.

Arthur's hand trembles as he finally reaches out and sets his palm on Vivi's bare shoulder. Her skin is a little cool and tacky with sweat. He quickly pulls away to watch as the multicolored splotch that immediate forms seems to swirl under Vivi's skin for a moment. Most of the colors fade, leaving a mix of yellows and oranges that slowly settle into the shape of a flower.

"Looks like some kind of sunflower?" Arthur barely registers Lewis's comment, too caught up in the feeling of one long-incomplete bond connecting.

" _ Vivi _ ." There's a flood of emotions thrumming between them and it takes Arthur a moment to parse through what he's getting from Vivi. There's flickers of sadness between waves of wonder and determination and excitement and over everything is joyousness.

"Oh, Artie." There's a spike of concern and want and then Vivi is climbing into Arthur's lap, her hands landing on his cheeks. He realizes he's crying when her thumbs swipe at the tears rolling down his cheeks. "You're ok, I've got you." She sniffs and Arthur notices the tears welling up in her eyes. "Lewis. Lew. Where do you want it?" Vivi flails her left hand out before turning her head so she can actually grab Lewis by the shoulder.

"Here," Lewis pushes up his right sleeve, pointing to the inside of his forearm, "I want your Mark here."

Arthur gives a watery smile and a little laugh bubbles up in his chest. Vivi's Mark is in the same spot on Lewis's left arm. This time there's no hesitation when Arthur reaches out. He lifts his hand just long enough for the three of them to watch his Mark form, then grabs Lewis's arm and pulls him in closer. Lewis's emotions flicker with regret, but mostly it's the same wonder and determination and excitement and joyousness. "Is it always gonna feel this strong?" Arthur whispers into Vivi's neck, feeling overwhelmed.

"No. Bonds take a little time to settle." Lewis shuffles them around on the sofa, turning sideways and pulling Arthur into his lap without dislodging Vivi. "Once things stabilize it'll be less all-consuming." Exhaustion drags at Arthur and he slumps sideways against Lewis.

Vivi sits up for a moment and Arthur blinks up at her. "Should take the arm off, get some sleep."

"Sleep sounds good." Arthur reaches over and starts to fumble with the latches that hold his prosthetic on and makes a noise of surprise when Vivi pushes his hand away.

"I got it. Just relax." Vivi is careful to support the prosthetic as she disengages the catches, whispering a little "sorry," when Arthur hisses at the jolt of things disconnecting.

When she moves to get up with the limb Lewis stops her with one large hand on her back. "Here." The little pink spirits appear again. "The Deadbeats can put it somewhere safe."

Vivi lets them take it with a bemused grin, and they watch as the arm is gently set on the table in the break room. She turns towards Lewis with a grin. "Helpful little guys."

Arthur keeps watching the Deadbeats as the little spirits investigate the prosthetic and manipulate the hand. He rubs absently at his stump, "they're cute when they're not all fangs and," a yawn interrupts him and he shakes his head to try and clear the sleepiness. "Sorry, not all fangs and claws."

Lewis winces. "Sorry about that."

"How long have you been wearing the arm?" Vivi is staring at Arthur's hand, still massaging his stump. "Have you taken it off at all this week?"

"Uhh, yes?"

Vivi glares and crosses her arms. "For longer than the time it takes to shower?" Arthur grimaces, which is answer enough. "You know you're not supposed to sleep in it! I'm going to get your cream out of the van."

" **It is unwise to be alone at present.** " All three of them jump at Mystery's voice, having forgotten he was still in the room. He looks up from where he's settled on the floor between the couch and the door. " **Shiromori may have retreated, but she will be waiting for an opportunity to strike.** "

"Oh. Uh, we could all…"

"I've got some in my locker. We don't need to go anywhere." Arthur points out the small set of lockers, each with a piece of tape bearing a name on the door. One of the Deadbeats drifts up from the prosthetic and simply phases through the door with Arthur's name on it. A few seconds later the locker door opens and the Deadbeat peeks around it, trilling a questioning sound at them as it presents a tube of medicated cream. "Yeah, that's it."

The Deadbeat darts over with the tube, dropping it into Vivi's hands. "Awww, thank you!" It trills happily and nuzzles against Vivi's neck, then turns to do the same to Arthur.

Arthur can't quite suppress a flinch and the Deadbeat coos sadly when it pulls back, petting gently at Arthur's cheeks with its little nub arms. "It's ok, you just startled me." The Deadbeat hums happily, loops around his neck, presses against his cheek, and flies back to rejoin the two still playing with his prosthetic. Arthur turns to take the tube of cream from Vivi but she's already squeezed some into her palm. "Viv, you don't have to…"

"Shush, you. I want to take care of you." She leans in and kisses the tip of his nose before shoving the tube into his hand. "Hold this." Her hands are cold but gentle against the tender skin and Arthur hisses. "Sorry, cold hands."

"Feels nice, actually."

"Anything I can do?" The question is quiet and earnest, and Vivi rewards Lewis with a fond smile.

"Massage his shoulder. The arm is kinda heavy and he tenses up when he's been wearing it for a long time."

Arthur grumbles half-heartedly as Lewis's hand settles on his shoulder, big and warm and quickly pinpointing the knots in Arthur's back. "Do I get any say in this?"

"Do you want us to stop?" There's teasing laughter in Lewis's voice and Arthur can't muster the will to even pretend to be annoyed.

"No."

Vivi's hands slowly let go of Arthur's stump, sliding down to settle on his waist. "Good. You're stuck with us now. We're gonna take care of you. We'll take care of each other."

Arthur feels like his chest is too small to contain the love he feels for his soulmates. He wraps his good arm around Vivi, pulling her into as tight a hug as he can manage. Vivi returns the hug, arms coming up around his ribs and squeezing, hands grasping at his shirt.

A quick tug pulls the tube of cream from his hand as Lewis's arms enfold Arthur and Vivi together. Arthur only spares a glance at the Deadbeat carrying the tube away, focusing more on tucking himself as tight as he can against Lewis's chest without losing grip on Vivi.

Lewis keeps murmuring: "shh, I've got you. We've got you. It's OK, you've got us. We're gonna be ok." Eventually the exhaustion drags Arthur down into a peaceful sleep.


End file.
